If you buy something through our links, ToolGuyd might earn an affiliate commission.

Back in August, Dewalt introduced a line of all new brushless corded and cordless grinders, including the new 20V Max Brushless variable speed die grinder, DCG462. We haven’t seen a release date for the cordless die grinder from Dewalt yet, but several retailers have started listing mid-December shipping ETAs.

The new Dewalt die grinder features a brushless motor, which offers longer runtime and eliminates the hassle of having to replace worn brushes. The performance of the brushless motor should also remain more constant over the life of the tool, because there are no brushes or commutator to wear down with use.

Advertisement

The cordless die grinder weighs 4 lbs and measures 14.9″ long. It features a 1/4″ arbor, which requires two wrenches to change the bit.

On the base of the tool is a 3-speed selector switch, where you can choose the maximum rotational speed to be 10,000 RPM, 17,500 RPM, or 25,000 RPM. The dual-position rocker switch lets you activate the tool with your hand in different positions, and allows for variable speed control of the tool, up to the selected maximum RPM.

The nose of the tool has a 3-LED ring light to illuminate your work.

The bare die grinder (DCG426B) will be priced at $169. It’s due to ship soon, but we don’t know exactly when. Two companies have listings for it so far: Acme Tools and CPO Outlets.

If you look on the CPO listing on Amazon, they claim it’s in stock, saying you can get it as soon as next week. The Acme Tool page on the other hand says “Warehouse acquiring product. Usually ships in 10-15 business days.”

About Benjamen

Benjamen Johnson grew up watching his dad work as a contractor and woodworker. He became an electrical engineer and took an interest in woodworking. Check out Ben's projects at Ben's Workshop or follow him on twitter or instagram.

How about a Finish nailer that even works? I have tried Porter Cable, Ryobi, DeWalt and Milwaukee 18 gauge and 16 gauge nailers. All of them either don’t have the power (Ryobi/Porter Cable), break within a week (DeWalt) or have such a heavy kickback it hurts to use it (Milwaukee).

Not to mention how bulky they are… I can see a die grinder being easy to make, but I’m with you, lets have a good finish nailer, brad nailer, router as well DeWalt!

We tried a 16ga angled Fusion gun – and it did not consistently sink nails for us. We thought it was going to be the replacement for our smelly Paslode Impulse guns – but the Paslodes were more consistent – for us anyway,

I use the 16 gauge straight, 18 gauge, and the 15 gauge Senco nailers. I love them all but find the 16 gauge the least consistent as well. Surprisingly the 15 gauge sinks nails perfectly, even with the larger nails.

I hope its better than the Makita LXDG01Z (wasn’t brushless) that we bought to try out. It had gotten good reviews on Amazon.
We thought that we might get away from the air hose for some small jobs but the guys said it was wimpy to the point of being useless. They were used to Dotco and Cleco pneumatic tools and didn’t even like corded-electric grinders. It might have had some use in our contracting business – but we were pretty scrupulous about keeping the businesses separate.

Die grinders are often used for deburring pipes, and for grinding or cutting in tight areas. So yes, it’s kind of like a heavy duty Dremel, but with limits as to the types of accessories you could safely use.

Grinders are probably not the most dangerous tool in the shop – but if you ever saw a grinding wheel disintegrate and fly apart you would (and should) have respect for the tool. I think that some of our Dotco grinders spun at 40,000 rpm – but even at 25,000 RPM a disintegrating wheel or grinding point is dramatic and dangerous. The guys in the shop were trained, wore leather aprons, plus safety glasses and face shields in combination. When you look at a grinding point or wheel – it specifies a maximum safe RPM – which is not just a suggestion. With grinding wheels – the rim of the wheel is what you grind with – not the side face.

Variable speed was the main reason I bought this. I was looking to get a Bosch 12V rotary tool, but got this instead. It should handle everything having the speed range it does. Now I need to find a 1/4 inch to 1/8 inch reducer so I can use dremel attachments. Milwaukee would be silly not to bring a variable speed out, hopefully you’ll see one next year.

That thing is huge, making it useless in tight spots (any modern automobile), and tiring at the bench (where I could just use a Dremel). I guess it could be useful in a welding or manufacturing setting, where you have room to swing it around.

I’ll stick with my 1/2 HP air die grinder, which is about the size of the black top 1/3 of the DeWalt, with my Dremel for backup.

My fortress construction, how did you manage to break the Dewalt finish nailer in a week? I’ve had the 18v nicad xrp for over 10 years with very few issues. It’s one of the best tools Dewalt ever made. Very solid tool. You must be talking about the 20v Dewalt. Haven’t tried it. The paslode sux. The bumper function is atrocious. I can’t speak for Hitachi or Senco. They make good pneumatic nailers, so their cordless might be worth a shot. But you should also come to the realization that there’s not a nailer that will sink the nail flush every single time. This die grinder seems enormous. Dewalt didn’t think to make it fit in tight areas. They really limited the utilization due to the size. While it has some nice features, they should have kept automotive/motorcycle metal fab in mind. I hope they make a long reduced collet adapter or a flexible extension with a reduced adapter. Otherwise it’s just an oversized rotary tool. Pretty much shot themselves in the foot, didn’t they.

It is hard to beat an air motor for size. When you look at a workhorse like a Cleco 216GLSB-250-C4 that is about 6 inches long and weighs just a little over 1 pound – you realize how big and unwieldy these cordless die grinders can be for many jobs.

I have the old 18v 16ga straight finish nailer as well. It’s been through about 30 home remodels. It finally started getting wonky (sporadic nail depths) so I started my quest for a new cordless Brad/finish nailer. I have been super disappointed with every nailer I’ve tried though. The first nailer I got was the 16 gauge angled finish nailer with a battery and case for $200. Since I had bought into the DeWalt line of 20 volt tools already I really wanted this one to work. And it did for 800 nails… Maybe mine was a lemon but since I already have compressor nailers, and the 20v battery generator, I can’t really justify needing a cordless nailer. I have been thinking about trying the Brad nailer again, but I’ll probably wait for better engineering.

I’d have to hold one. But I’m a little surprised by the handle and shape since it so closely matches the OMT. And I do like the OMT but for a die grinder I was hoping for something a bit smaller overall. It’s like they said OK trade the gear box out on this existing motor and housing – add this extra circuit bam out the door.

Seems like it could use some better design. but again I’d have to hold one before I made up my mind completely.

Can I use this on my dane’s toenails? They’re about 3/8″ diameter and dull blades after one use. The dremel scares him though and I guess these aren’t any quieter. The attachment at the end makes the difference though.

I plan on getting this Dewalt die grinder, but I can see that it’s easy to spend a lot on some of the attachments available for die grinders. My interests and needs for this lie in the general category of a retired DIYer. So I won’t be cleaning up welds or castings, or deburring 12 inch steel pipe all day long. For me this will serve as a more robust and capable alternative to my corded Dremel.

Any suggestions, from those with experience, for a good/descent set of carbide burrs as well as cut off wheel and mandrel recommendations?

Newsletter

Recent Comments

fred on The Best Hook and Pick Set?: “Moody also make spring hooks and sets: https://www.amazon.com/Threaded-Spring-Tool-Kit-Light/dp/B0026GI62A/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=B0026GI62A&qid=1558784803&s=industrial&sr=1-1”